He said that as long as the Palestinian issue is concerned, the first priority is resistance and struggle, adding that the integration of different Palestinian groups definitely plays a significant role in achieving victory.
Qalibaf made the comments in the Iranian capital Tehran at a meeting with Khalil al-Hayya, a senior official of Palestinian Resistance Movement, Hamas.
The top Iranian lawmaker said that support for Palestine is deep-rooted in his country, as prominent figures like Morteza Motahhari worked in support of the Palestinian cause even during the Pahlavi regime’s era.
Referring to the designation of the last Friday of the holy month of Ramadan as International Quds Day by the late founder of the Islamic Republic Imam Khomeini, Qalibaf said Imam Khomeini’s move was a vigilant act that helped keep alive the issue of Palestine and Al-Quds among Muslims.
The Iranian parliament speaker noted that Imam Khomeini considered Palestine as the main issue of the Islamic world, stressing that the Islamic Republic will continue its support for the Palestinians and Al-Quds.
Khalil al-Hayya, on his part, said that, this year, the Palestinian people in the occupied West Bank once again prevented the Zionist regime from implementing its plots against Al-Aqsa Mosque.
He said the occupiers have been attempting to increase their presence at Al-Aqsa and empty the mosque from Palestinians.
But, he added, the Palestinian people and resistance groups have thwarted that plan, with Al-Quds and Al-Aqsa still remaining as the symbol of resistance.
Al-Hayya said that anti-Israel operations by resistance groups have expanded all over Palestine, adding that there is also an organized force in the besieged Gaza Strip, which is ready to confront the enemy.
The Hamas officially expressed gratitude to Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah Resistance Movement for their support to the Palestinian people.
Elsewhere in his remarks, he referred to the courageous acts by martyred Iranian General Qassem Soleimani who was assassinated by the US in Iraq in January 2020.
Al-Hayya said that as a result of those acts, resistance groups are now in a better situation and stronger than before, while enjoying more enhanced integration with the Palestinian people.
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